How to file DE 2063 for Work Sharing/Reduced Earnings with EDD? Form submission confusion
My hours just got cut from 40 to 25 at my graphic design job. My supervisor mentioned I might qualify for partial unemployment through the Work Sharing program and gave me form DE 2063 (Reduced Earnings/Work Sharing Certification). I'm completely lost on what to do with this form! Do I submit it online somewhere? Mail it? Does my employer need to submit it first? I checked all over the EDD website and can't find clear instructions. My supervisor isn't sure either since I'm the first person in our company going through this. Has anyone successfully filed for Work Sharing/Reduced Earnings before? The form is sitting on my desk and I'm afraid of making a mistake and delaying potential benefits.
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Ethan Wilson
Your employer should be handling most of this! For Work Sharing (which uses DE 2063), your company needs to be enrolled in the Work Sharing program FIRST before you can submit anything. It's not something you can apply for individually. They need to submit plan application DE 8686 and get approved before any employees can use the DE 2063 forms. If they're not in the program yet, they're giving you the wrong information. Ask HR if they've already been approved for Work Sharing. If not, you should file a regular UI claim instead and report your reduced earnings during certification.
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Aisha Abdullah
•Thank you for clarifying! I'm going to check with HR tomorrow to see if they've actually enrolled in the Work Sharing program. If they haven't, I'll file a regular claim. I had no idea there was a difference!
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NeonNova
i used work sharing last yr when my restaurants hrs got cut. boss gave us the forms every week, we filld them out with our hrs worked, he signed them and sent them to edd. then we got partial benefits for the missing hrs. your boss needs to handle most of it tho
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Aisha Abdullah
•Thanks for sharing your experience! So it sounds like my employer should be more involved in this process than they currently are. I'll definitely bring this up with them.
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Yuki Tanaka
Work Sharing and Reduced Earnings are actually TWO DIFFERENT PROGRAMS! This confuses so many people. Work Sharing = Your employer enrolls, you use DE 2063, they submit it for you, you avoid full unemployment Reduced Earnings = You file regular UI claim, certify as normal, report your earnings each week, get partial benefits Sounds like your employer doesn't know the difference either. If they handed you a DE 2063 but aren't enrolled in Work Sharing, they're confused about the programs.
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Aisha Abdullah
•Oh wow, I had no idea these were completely different programs! The terminology is really confusing. It does sound like my employer might be mixing these up too.
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NeonNova
•ya thats right! my boss had to get approved first for work sharing, took like 3 weeks b4 we could use the forms
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Carmen Diaz
If your graphic design company is small, they probably aren't doing Work Sharing. That program has tons of requirements and paperwork for employers. Most small companies just cut hours and tell employees to file regular UI. When I got my hours cut, I just filed online normally, reported my earnings each certification period, and got partial benefits for the lost hours. Much simpler.
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Andre Laurent
•This is correct. The Work Sharing program requires a LOT of employer participation and specific requirements (must affect at least 10% of workforce, must maintain health benefits, etc). Many smaller businesses find it easier to just let employees file regular UI and report their earnings. OP, if your employer isn't sure how to submit the form, that's a big red flag they're probably not enrolled in Work Sharing. Just file a regular UI claim online at edd.ca.gov and report your earnings when you certify every two weeks.
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Emily Jackson
If you need to call EDD to figure out if your employer is in the Work Sharing program or how to proceed, good luck getting through. When my hours were cut last October, I spent 3 WEEKS trying to reach someone! I finally got through using Claimyr (claimyr.com) - they have a system that gets you connected to EDD agents, usually within 10-15 minutes. They have a video demo too: https://youtu.be/JmuwXR7HA10?si=TSwYbu_GOwYzt9km. It worked for me when I needed to ask about my specific situation with reduced hours. Ended up I could just file regular UI, but needed the agent to update something in my account first.
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Aisha Abdullah
•Thanks for the suggestion! I'll try asking HR first, but if I need to call EDD, I'll definitely check out this service. The thought of spending weeks trying to get through gives me anxiety!
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Liam Mendez
EDD makes EVERYTHING unnecessarily complicated!!! Why can't they just have CLEAR instructions on their website??? I bet your employer doesn't even know what program they're trying to use. The whole system is designed to confuse people so they don't get benefits they deserve. I bet half the people who qualify for partial unemployment don't even apply because the process is so confusing!!!
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NeonNova
•i know right?? took us forever to figure it out too
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Ethan Wilson
•I agree the website could be clearer, but the Work Sharing program actually has a dedicated handbook with detailed instructions: https://edd.ca.gov/siteassets/files/pdf_pub_ctr/de8684.pdf. The issue is that many employers don't read it thoroughly before telling employees about the program.
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Sophia Nguyen
My sister-in-law works at EDD and she told me they get this confusion ALL THE TIME. She said if your employer hands you a form but doesn't know how to submit it, 99% chance they're not in the Work Sharing program. File your own UI claim online, don't worry about that form.
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Yuki Tanaka
•This matches what I've heard too. The Work Sharing program requires a lot of employer preparation and ongoing paperwork. They should be very clear about the process if they're actually enrolled.
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Andre Laurent
To summarize what everyone's saying: 1. If your employer is enrolled in Work Sharing, they should collect your DE 2063 forms weekly, sign them, and submit them to EDD 2. If they're not enrolled (which seems likely), you should file a regular UI claim and just report your earnings during your bi-weekly certifications 3. Your best next step is to ask HR specifically "Is our company enrolled in the EDD Work Sharing program?" If they say no or seem confused, just file a regular UI claim Hope that helps clear things up!
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Aisha Abdullah
•This summary is super helpful! I'm going to talk to HR first thing tomorrow. I suspect we're not actually enrolled in Work Sharing based on everyone's responses. I'll likely end up filing a regular UI claim. Thank you all for the guidance!
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Amara Nnamani
Good luck with HR tomorrow! Just wanted to add one more thing - if you do end up filing a regular UI claim, make sure you have documentation of your reduced hours (like recent pay stubs or a letter from your employer). EDD will want to see proof that your hours were cut through no fault of your own. Also, when you certify bi-weekly, be very accurate about reporting your earnings - even being off by a few dollars can cause issues. The system is pretty forgiving for partial unemployment as long as you're honest about what you earned each week.
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